I am totally obsessed with GroupOn. My friend Ruthie emailed me a daily deal from GroupOn with the qualifier that she was sure I’d heard of it. Well, I had not and shame on me. This is DA BOMB! Every day, they have a new, ridiculous deal. The catch is enough people have to buy it to qualify for the deal. I saw a mani/pedi for $25 (instead of $75) and other crazy good bargains. They have about 20 cities on the list so check and see if yours is there and get to saving!
Speaking of daily deals. BTrendie features a deal-of-the-day, too, just for moms or pregnant women. I wish I’d discovered this ages ago. They had a Quinny stroller for 40% off the other day. Seriously? If you do sign up, use this link and I might get a discount or something.
Pronouncing Baby Brands. Cool Mom Picks has a very handy guide on how to pronounce some of the big baby brand names. Think you know how to pronounce Robeez shoes? Or Medela? (Hint: it rhymes with tequila.) Think again!
When Kristie emailed me as part of our new “Find it for Me ‘Rean” feature, I was excited, then scared. She is looking for stylish, affordable vegan shoes. The stylish part was relatively easy — I knew Natalie Portman had just launched a line of vegan shoes — but the affordable part was a nightmare. Natalie’s shoes are like, $180+ — and that’s on sale! But I’m a redhead and I don’t give up that easily.
Kristie specifically requested pumps for work, sandals for summer and shoes for her little boy. Zappos has a vegan category but I wasn’t seeing a lot of cute pumps. I also searched Amazon for vegan shoes and DSW Shoe Warehouse (where I get most of my shoes). In addition to searching “vegan,” I looked for “canvas” and other non-leather, non-suede materials. Of course, I searched Etsy, too! I was starting to panic a little because most of the vegan shoes were crunchy, granola, canvas sneakers or flats. Nothing wrong with that, but I wanted to find Kristie some CUTE shoes. The kind that you want to run out and get a pedicure for.
Last, but certainly not least, let’s find some cute shoes for your little boy!
There’s a brand called Acorn Kids I found on Zappos. These might be a bit pricey but honestly, I’m not sure because I’ve never bought children’s shoes before! (Just starting to figure out infant shoes.) These little monster shoes are $36 and sooooo cute:
Tom’s says they’re going to have youth sizes coming in October. The pics are cute but no idea what they will cost.
Simple Kids makes vegan shoes for kids. These are $44.95 a pair. Is it just me or are kids shoes expensive? I guess there are always Crocs.
All right, Kristie, so how’d I do? I hope you find some shoes you love that fit your feet and your wallet! And because we picked your question, we are going to send you a $25 Amazon gift card to get you started.
Are you looking for something? A hard-to-find gift idea? Something for a new mom? A baby? Your best friend? Stumped for decorating ideas? Hey, this is a random blog so the more random the better! Send me an email at sherean at gmail dot com and put “Find it for me ‘Rean” in the subject line. If I can find it and use your question, I’ll send you a $25 Amazon gift card, too!
Three yeas ago today, Christopher and I were married on the banks of the Chattahoochee River here in Atlanta. It was one of those perfect, rare humidity-free days, sunny and in the 70′s. He teared up as I made the way down the aisle. The youngest members of our bridal party — 3 years old, both of them — delighted everyone with their halting walks, stumbles (my nephew plopped down on his butt and popped right back up), skips and detours. We had two ceremonies: an American one and a Persian one. We danced a Foxtrot to “Fever.” We had cedar smoked salmon with apple pie for dessert. Champagne and pomegranate martinis flowed. I cried and smiled and pinched myself and floated through the evening.
There’s a lot of press about postpartum depression. I mean, who hasn’t heard of Brooke Shields squaring off against Tom Cruise over it? I was prepared for postpartum depression. I’d struggled with depression before, mostly in my 20′s, but some in my 30′s, and knew that put me at a higher risk.
What I didn’t know is that you can also get depression DURING pregnancy — perinatal depression, it’s often called. I got it, big time, along with a big wallop of anxiety. So bad I had to see a psychiatrist and was treated for it with medication. Of course, this made me feel guilty and like I was going to hurt my baby. The doctor explained that the risks with the medication weren’t known, but they did know the damage that depression and anxiety could do to a developing fetus. Small comfort, right?
I took the meds and cried. My husband was wonderfully supportive. By mid second trimester, the hormones that were causing those problems went away, I guess, and I felt better. Just like the psychiatrist predicted. But the fact that I had depression during pregnancy put me at an even higher risk for postpartum so we were vigilant, watching for signs. Fortunately, I dodged that bullet.
I felt like such a bad pregnant woman. I hated being pregnant. I felt sick: you name it and I got it. I even got RLS (Restless Leg Syndrome) in pregnancy. The physical problems on top of the depression made for a pretty unhappy time. I remember crying on the couch and feeling soooo guilty that I wasn’t feeling happy. Everyone’s happy when they’re pregnant, right?
I knew I had depression and I knew it was triggered by something in my chemical stew. I’d been pregnant twice before (miscarriages); one pregnancy made it to 11 weeks and I didn’t have anywhere near this kind of anxiety. So the minute I sorted out that this wasn’t “normal” pregnancy hormone stuff, I marched my butt to my Ob and said “help.”
My son was born completely happy and healthy. I was thrilled and am thrilled every single day. He is such a delight. I can barely remember what it was like when I was pregnant to curl up on the couch and not want to read or watch TV or eat.
The New York Times has a piece out today about this and interviewed me for it. It really was hard to remember, even though it wasn’t that long ago. It’s like once the happy hormones kicked in, I developed amnesia about how awful it all was. I would not wish that on anyone. I agreed to be interviewed and photographed for the piece because I hope if you’re struggling, you’ll speak up, too. There is help. You will get through it and you will get better.
Now, for a funny story. Sort of. In my 7th month, I was getting my teeth cleaned. The hygienist told me she knew another woman named “Sherean.” “Really,” I asked, “is she Persian, too, like me?” The hygienist told me that her friend had died. “I’m so sorry,” I said and then I just had to ask how she died. “Postpartum depression after her third child.” Huh? You don’t DIE from postpartum, I said. “Suicide,” she said.
Thank goodness this was later in my pregnancy when I was over the perinatal depression but I was still paranoid I’d get postpartum. I laughed about it — how could you not — but it is a serious condition. Get help if you need it.
Sure you can just use cloth diapers or any old towel to catch that spit-up, but I wanted cute burp cloths. I figured if they were going to be laying around all over the house, they ought to match the decor. I found TONS of cute burp cloths on Etsy – just like the designer ones at the baby boutiques, only less-expensive, plus you’re buying directly from the mom who made them. I dug that.
Here are a few of my favorites (the photos are linked to the seller’s shops):
But some of my all-time favorites are the Monster Burp Cloths from Etsy shop Frank and Me. I think this design is hilarious and the cloths are super-soft (made of fleece). I also bought some of her little “swipers” (think booger-wiper or wash cloth) and a funny monster tooth fairy pillow for my monster-obsessed 4 year old nephew. (Big hit!) How cute are these? These would be great to stuff in a shower basket for the next non-traditional momma you know.
Those burp cloths are fast-becoming my son’s “lovey.” Here he is cuddled up with them the other night. Isn’t this sweet?
Just a reminder: these are all items I actually own. Nobody sent me anything to review. Everything I blab about is something I own, know someone who owns, or want to buy.
Congratulations to Andrea T., who won our $75 Zutano shopping spree. Her comment — # 100 — was selected by Random.org as our winning number. Andrea, I hope you love your Zutano stuff as much as I love mine! In fact, I just placed a big order yesterday for fall clothes from Zutano for my baby. I can’t wait to put him in some new prints and those DARLING hats!
I’ve been super busy working on a couple of presentations for upcoming speaking gigs. I love doing the research but find myself distracted because we also have to finalize the plans for the new house (more research) and pack up all our stuff with an 11-month old who has picked NOW to start getting wigged out by new people, places and things.
So it’s stressful but it’s a good, happy kind of stress. My husband and I are going to build our dream home — and it’s going to be pretty “green” (environmentally friendly) with great energy efficiency. Our baby is going to get to grow up in this new house which will be healthier for him and the planet. And we’ll be living in a neighborhood that I LOVE. I really can’t wait.
In the meantime, I’ll be a little nuts and I’m sure it’ll be reflected in even more random posts than usual. Bear with me!
Open in the browser right now:
Another cute owl mobile that didn’t make my owl post. I saw this on Gifts Define Facebook page. It was a custom order and I said, “hey, you should make that available in your shop,” and they did – the day after my owl post went live. I wanted you owl-lovin’ folks to see it, though, as I think it would make a darling addition to an owl or woodland creature themed nursery.
Pregnancy Posts. I am loving the pregnancy posts at DesignMom. DesignMom is pregnant (with her sixth!) and is posting pregnancy stories from other women. They are well-written, some touching, some funny, but all of them made me smile. Even though I HATED being pregnant (something I’m going to tell you more about next week).
My Best Friend’s Birthday. Today is Terri’s birthday. She is my best friend. You know the one you can call for anything, any time. We’ve known each other for 17 years and through a series of jobs and coincidences, have actually lived in three states, worked at the same companies, and lived in the same zip codes. She is an amazing woman and I wanted all of you to know it. Here’s one of my favorite wedding day pics of the two of us. Even though you can’t see our faces, I think it says it all. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, T!
OK so I’ve been thinking about doing this new feature for a while and finally worked up the nerve to just do it already. You know how I had a couple of folks ask me for owl ideas and I posted some yesterday? That kind of thing happens to me all the time in my non-blog life. It’s actually one of the reasons I started the blog so I’d have a place to post all the random stuff I end up researching for myself and others.
I figured I might as well make it official. Are you stumped for something? A decorating idea? The perfect gift? Maybe you just need a recommendation for a movie (for that rare date night)? Send me an email at: sherean at gmail dot com and I’ll see what I can rustle up.
Warning: I am a prolific researcher and might overwhelm you with links! I’ll post your request and the stuff I find here on the blog. And I’m sure you wonderful readers will add your ideas, too!
And just to get this jump-started, for the months of October and November, if I select your question, I’ll send you a $25 Amazon gift card. What more could you ask for? Answers to your question AND Amazon bucks.
p.s. “Rean” is my nickname, hence the name of this new feature: Find it for me, Rean!
–Sherean